2014-15 Swimming & Diving Preview: Individual Medley

10/9/2014 9:34:00 AM | Swimming & Diving

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke men and women rewrote the program record book in the individual medley events last season. Head coach Dan Colella anticipates even greater postseason success for the group during the year to come.

2014 Postseason Results:
Michael Miller made history at the 2014 ACC Championship, becoming the first Duke male swimmer to garner All-ACC honors as a freshman. He broke the school record in the 400 IM twice at the conference meet and surprised with a third-place finish in the event. The Houston, Texas native also surpassed the previous program benchmark in the 200 IM to place 13th in the conference. Bradley Cline represented the Blue Devils in the bonus final and earned an NCAA provisional qualifying mark at 1:46.51.

For the women, Liza Bragg's performance in the 400 IM was a highlight of the ACC meet as the freshman

set a school record and notched an NCAA 'B' cut at 4:18.25. 2014 graduate Christine Wixted scored for Duke in the 200 IM with a 20th-place finish.

Key Returners:
Miller and Cline posted some of the fastest 200 IM times among all freshmen nationwide last year, and are back to pace the group in 2014-15. Cline dropped significant time during his rookie season to final in the event at ACCs and looks to be back there this spring. Colella says Miller has been focusing on his overall strength which should pay dividends in the 200-yard race.

Senior Tyler Toren has demonstrated improvement in each of his three seasons at Duke and will be a leader in both the 200 and 400 IM this year. Junior Ryan Prince is another upperclassman who has continued to develop in the events.

Bragg returns IM experience to the women's team along with junior Kiera Molloy, who performed well in the 400 IM at ACCs last spring despite battling back from an injury.

Newcomers to Watch:
The Blue Devil coaching staff brought in impressive IM talent on the women's side with the freshman class, which includes Leah Goldman, Lizzie Devitt, Abby Artmann and Verity Abel. Goldman registered a lifetime best of 1:59.8 in the 200 IM during her prep career in California while Abel won a YMCA Long Course national championship in the 400 IM.

Colella's Take:
“Michael Miller was tremendous to watch last year. But he is set on not being just outside NCAA qualification, but rather being in Iowa City at NCAAs this year. He's committed and is doing the things he needs to this year in order to be there.”

The Duke men and women kick off dual meet action Saturday, Oct. 11 at Pittsburgh. The meet begins with the diving events at 11 a.m. and will be streamed live on CollegeSportsLive.com ($).

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